Experts weigh in as N.B. changes COVID-19 PCR testing policy to require medical referrals

An Atlantic region scientist who studies immune system responses to viruses says he supports the further cutback in COVID-19 PCR testing, which takes effect in New Brunswick today, while an infection control epidemiologist calls the move "unfortunate" but not surprising.

New Brunswickers who have COVID-19 symptoms can no longer self-refer for a PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test, which is processed in a lab and considered the gold standard for diagnosis.

PCR tests are now only available to people with symptoms for whom "the outcome of PCR testing will directly influence treatment or care" — and they require a referral from a health-care provider, such as a doctor or nurse practitioner.

"I'm not sure there are many situations right now where … you would need a PCR test, you know, if you already have access to a rapid test," said Rod Russell, a professor of immunology and virology at Memorial University in Newfoundland and Labrador,

"And that's maybe the key right there, is the access to the rapid test, right?"

Rapid tests, also known as point-of-care testing (POCT) kits, are still available for pick up by appointment in New Brunswick through various community-based sites, such as public libraries, municipal buildings and health centres.

But the province only has about 337,000 rapid tests in inventory, as of March 22, according to the federal government's website. That's nearly a 47 per cent drop from a month ago, and represents the second smallest stockpile in the country, after Yukon's roughly 272,000.

It works out to 0.4 per New Brunswicker.

The federal government stopped shipping rapid tests to provinces and territories at the end of January, but still has about 50 million allocated to them, "which will be held for readiness in case of future need," a Health Canada spokesperson has said.

Colin Furness, an infection control epidemiologist and assistant professor at the University of Toronto, said he understands providing PCR tests has been expensive, and they're so sensitive they can detect a past infection when the person is no longer actually contagious, which is "problematic."

He contends PCR testing was most useful earlier in the pandemic "when we were trying to have no COVID at all.

"Knowing that you had an infection, whether you were infectious or not, was actually really valuable information — for contact tracing, for understanding the behaviour of the virus," he said.

"Those days are long gone."

Furness is firmly opposed, however, to any winding down of rapid tests. Although they're less sensitive than PCR tests, they're arguably "more socially useful."